Battle of the Elements
Chapter 28 Bridgette

I was seven when it happened. My parent loved me even with my powers. My town respected them, so I was safe. My brother and I shared a room and everything was perfect until that night.

My brother had left the town for a day to visit the kingdoms, he was going to sell our produce for some extra money. I missed him, but he assured me he would be back by morning. My father and mother were both very proud of us. Edward and Annabelle were their names.

One night, I was asleep in my room. My eyes flew open at the sounds of screams. I was dazed. It was too hot. It was too hot. I looked around the room. There was a reason it was so hot. The room was in flames. I heard the cries of my mother, “Bridgette!” she screamed.

“Mommy?!” I replied, panicked and scared. I tried to move, one leg at a time. I took a breath, foul air flooded my lungs and I collapsed onto the floor, coughing wildly.

My mother appeared in the doorway – what was left of it – “Bridgette!” she screamed. I crawled slowly towards her. I crawled through the flames, barely feeling the heat – that was the only reason I survived that night, my elemental magic. I reached my mother and she picked me up in her arms. A sob left my mouth and I felt hot tears run down my cheeks before evaporating from the unbearable heat. “Mummy…” I said as she led the way. My father came bursting through one of the doors, he had a burn on his face and he wrapped his arms around my mother and I. We ran to the door, I bounced around violently in my mother’s arms as we ran. Sweat was trickling down my face as we reached the door. Smoke clouded everything. I could barely see in front of me. My parents stopped suddenly. I looked to the door. It was covered in fire and deadly streaks of blue flame. There was no way we could get out. My mother clutched me tighter and I heard her sob as she looked to my father. My father wrapped his arms around me, shielding me from the flames. I could feel him getting weaker and weaker from the smoke, I could feel my mother leaning against him as he held me.

My mother stroked my hair. I cried. It was the end.

Voices came from the outside. One of the glass windows smashed and hands reached inside the house. Shouts called us. We made our way to the windows. I clung to my mother tighter. A rumbling sound came from above us.

My mother handed me to the arms. Separating us. I screamed and thrashed, “Mummy! Mummy no!! MUMMY!” I saw a tear run down her face and my father pulled in tighter. I heard one sentence before I never saw them again, “I love you Bridgette.”

The hands pulled me out of the house. Cold air hit me like a brick wall but I didn’t stop thrashing and screaming. A large crack sounded through the air and just as I reached for them, the house crumbled to the ground. The last I saw of them was my mother crying into my father’s chest and him giving me a pathetic smile and then they were both gone.

I sat there, outside my house that wasn’t there anymore as they tried to dig through it to replace my parents’ bodies. Everyone stared at me with accusing looks on their faces. One of them – a lady who used to be my school teacher – came over to me and sat down next to me for a while. She would glare at people who looked at me with hateful eyes. She offered for me to stay with her until my brother got back from his trip. I said no in a weak voice, so she brought me a blanket and some food that I didn’t taste. She sat there with me until the night was over, then until the day was done. We didn’t talk, even though she wanted to. I just sat there, shocked at what had just happened. My parents were…

A carriage pulled up outside the house that wasn’t there anymore. Three guards came out of the carriage with swords. They surrounded us.

The teacher put her arms around me, “You can’t take her! She’s just a child!”

One of the guards said in a gentle voice, “We’re not going to kill her. But we need her to come to a new program we’re starting. It’s called the Magic Inspection Program.”

I felt the lady loosen her grip, “What will you do to her?”

“We’re just going to run some tests, just to learn from her. If we can do that, we can know how to prevent… things like this.”

I felt tears and rage swell up in my body, “I didn’t do it! I didn’t!”

The teacher stroked my hair and I was immediately reminded of my mother. All of the strength I had just had was drained of my body and I burst into tears.

“I’m sure you didn’t mean to. And it’s not your fault. It’s ours, the kingdom has made sorcerers afraid to show themselves. That’s how this happens. Now we are letting you learn to control your powers.”

The teacher looked to me, “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to Bridgette.”

I nodded numbly. The guards were right. This wouldn’t have happened if I knew how to control my powers. This was my fault. “I’ll go.”

The guard sounded relieved, “Good, we really wanted you to make the right choice.”

The teacher let go of me as I walked away with the guards. One of them lifted me into the carriage and the other put chains around my wrists.

“I thought I had a choice.” I said.

The guard scoffed, “We were going to make you come one way or the other kid.” He wasn’t very nice. I pictured setting fire to his hair, but it didn’t happen.

Liane (The teacher)

Just as the carriage left, I saw Damian round the corner. There was pain flooding his eyes. “Where is she!?” he yelled, anger rising in his voice.

“Who?” I asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Bridgette?! WHERE IS SHE?!” he yelled, scaring me for a moment.

“She’s fine. She’s safe. She made it out, but your parents…”

“I know.” He said sharply, “But where is my sister?”

“The guards took her to a place where she can learn to control and use her magic for good.”

Damian seemed to be angrier with that. “Leave me alone Liane.”

I did as he said but on my way out, I heard him mutter something that sounded hysterical and I felt the need to leave him as soon as possible, “I’ll replace her. She can’t hide from me. I’ll get that little bitch.”